Chaos Ensued at Hanteo Music Awards due to ZB1’s Fans?

Held at Dongdaemun Design Plaza on the 17th and 18th of February, the 31st Hanteo Music Awards was supposed to be a place where Korean idols and singers showcased colorful stages and received recognition for their performances throughout the year. Unlike its goal to promote the power of K-pop and communication between artists and music fans, what remained after the event were disorderly crowds and the shameful bare face of the organizer who failed to control the scene.

In particular, the organizer faced a backlash as their inexperience in organizing events has stained the reputation of an awards ceremony. Having popular Korean idols, such as NCT, ZB1, aespa and ATEEZ, in their lineup, they should have prepared proper safety measures for the audience because the floor area was made as Standing, not Seating. However, they completely failed to manage the crowds, which caused various problems to happen.

Fans flocked to the area near the artists’ seats, creating a chaotic scene in which they kept pushing each other. Noticing the dangerous situation, several artists even stepped forward, showed gestures trying to calm down the crowds, and asked fans to follow the safety guides, such as “Please take a step back”, “I hope you guys listen to the lead of the bodyguards”, “Please enjoy the show safely”, etc.

Aside from the crowd issue, the award ceremony was a mess itself as numerous incidents kept occurring throughout the event. In particular, an unexpected pooping incident happened. The cause is speculated to be the continuous pushes in the crowds that blocked the fans from getting out to go to the restroom on time. In addition, there were also reports about a big fight between ZB1 fans after someone shouted “Kim Ji-woong Leaves” after the group’s performance. 

The biggest problem with the Hanteo Music Awards, which is considered the “worst award ceremony of all time” due to the series of unprecedented issues, is their negligence and ignorance in managing the audience. Even though the pooping incident and fights within the fandom were unexpected, the organizer should have established a safety measure called section division within the Standing area at least.

Another reason was the lack of staff to control the situation immediately. If there had been enough staff to manage the crowd when they started pushing each other, the fight could have been stopped and other problems might not worsened.

Luckily, nothing more serious occurred that day. However, it is true that such incidents, from the messing standing order to the fights, could have been prevented beforehand. Without the organizer’s negligence in preparation, the Hanteo Music Awards would have taken place happily and successfully.

Source: Daum